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China - H5N1 death in Alberta, Canada upon return from China trip - died from meningoencephalitis

Alberta health officials have confirmed an isolated, fatal case of H5N1 or avian influenza, Health Minister Rona Ambrose said Wednesday. The infected person, an Alberta resident who recently travelled to Beijing, China, died Jan. 3. The case was confirmed in a lab test last night. It's the first such case in North America.

Officials created confusion by referring to the patient as "him" and "her" in order to avoid identifying anyone. Officials said that they would not identify the sex, age or occupation of the patient.

North America’s first human case of H5N1, or avian flu, was confirmed after an Alberta woman died from the virus, Health Minister Rona Ambrose announced Wednesday.
The woman died Jan. 3 after falling ill on her way home from a trip to China in late December.

Dr. James Talbot, chief medical officer for Alberta, said the person was admitted to hospital on Jan. 1 with high fever and “decreasing CNS consciousness” (meaning extreme lethargy). There was no cough or other signs of respiratory illness, which is usually the case with influenza, but not always with H5N1. Dr. Talbot said the patient died of meningoencephalitis, or swelling of the brain.

Because of the unusual presentation of the illness, a sample of the person’s blood was sent to the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg, which confirmed on Tuesday night that the infection was caused by H5N1 virus.

Comment

Health Minister Fred Horne released the following statement today regarding Alberta’s first rare and isolated case of avian influenza.

Results that were received from the provincial laboratory on Monday, and confirmed by the National Microbiology Laboratory on Tuesday, indicate that an Albertan has died from H5N1 avian influenza.

This individual travelled to China in December. Upon returning to Alberta, this person was admitted to hospital on Jan. 1 and passed away on Jan. 3.

“I would like to extend my condolences to the family for the loss of their loved one. I also want to thank our health care workers and our Chief Medical Officer of Health for their swift action and for their close co-ordination with the Government of Canada,” said Health Minister Fred Horne.

“This is a very rare and isolated case,” said Dr. James Talbot, Alberta’s Chief Medical Officer of Health. “Avian influenza is not easily transmitted from person to person. It is not the same virus that is currently present in seasonal influenza in Alberta.

“Public health has followed up with all close contacts of this individual and offered Tamiflu as a precaution. None of them have symptoms and the risk of developing symptoms is extremely low. Precautions for health care staff were also taken as part of this individual’s hospital treatment.

“I expect that with the rarity of transmission and the additional precautions taken, there will be no more cases in Alberta.”

In 2013, there were 38 world-wide cases of H5N1 avian influenza reported to the World Health Organization and 24 deaths.

Under the Building Alberta Plan, our government is investing in families and communities, living within our means, and opening new markets for Alberta's resources to ensure we're able to fund the services Albertans told us matter most to them. We will continue to deliver the responsible change Albertans voted for.

. . . China does not have a history of being forthcoming about H5N1. . . .

Officially China has only reported 45 cases of H5N1, or about 7% of all H5N1 cases. Last year (2013) China only reported two H5N1 cases. Together Indonesia, Egypt, and Vietnam have reported about 75% of all H5N1 cases, yet not one foreign national been infected in these countries. How likely is it that a foreign visitor would be infected in a country that only reported two human H5N1 cases last year.

Officially China has only reported 45 cases of H5N1, or about 7&#37; of all H5N1 cases. Last year (2013) China only reported two H5N1 cases. Together Indonesia, Egypt, and Vietnam have reported about 75% of all H5N1 cases, yet not one foreign national been infected in these countries. How likely is it that a foreign visitor would be infected in a country that only reported two human H5N1 cases last year.

The story is only about 30 minutes old, and details are still emerging, but we have word of the first fatal case of H5N1 in North America, that of a Chinese traveler who recently died in an Alberta hospital, and who was subsequently tested and found to have been infected with the H5N1 virus.

Our first stop is an announcement issued by the government of Alberta followed by excerpts from a Canadian Press news report.

Avian influenza death confirmed in AlbertaJan 08, 2014 Media inquiriesHealth Minister Fred Horne released the following statement today regarding Alberta’s first rare and isolated case of avian influenza. Results that were received from the provincial laboratory on Monday, and confirmed by the National Microbiology Laboratory on Tuesday, indicate that an Albertan has died from H5N1 avian influenza.This individual travelled to China in December. Upon returning to Alberta, this person was admitted to hospital on Jan. 1 and passed away on Jan. 3. “I would like to extend my condolences to the family for the loss of their loved one. I also want to thank our health care workers and our Chief Medical Officer of Health for their swift action and for their close co-ordination with the Government of Canada,” said Health Minister Fred Horne.“This is a very rare and isolated case,” said Dr. James Talbot, Alberta’s Chief Medical Officer of Health. “Avian influenza is not easily transmitted from person to person. It is not the same virus that is currently present in seasonal influenza in Alberta.“Public health has followed up with all close contacts of this individual and offered Tamiflu as a precaution. None of them have symptoms and the risk of developing symptoms is extremely low. Precautions for health care staff were also taken as part of this individual’s hospital treatment. “I expect that with the rarity of transmission and the additional precautions taken, there will be no more cases in Alberta.”In 2013, there were 38 world-wide cases of H5N1 avian influenza reported to the World Health Organization and 24 deaths.

By: The Canadian PressWednesday, Jan. 8, 2014 at 3:12 PM | Comments: 0OTTAWA - Federal public health officials say a fatal human case of H5N1 bird flu has been reported in Canada, the first such case in North America.Health Minister Rona Ambrose says the case, which was located in Alberta, was an isolated one and that the risk to the general public is small."The risk of getting H5N1 is very low," Ambrose told a hastily assembled news conference in Ottawa via conference call. "This case is not part of the seasonal flu, which circulates in Canada every year."The H5N1 strain is unrelated to the seasonal flu outbreak, Ambrose added.Health officials say the victim had travelled to China last month and was hospitalized after returning to Alberta on Jan. 1, then died two days later.They say that while it remains unclear how the person contracted the virus, there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission.(Continue . . .)

While contact tracing will be done, at this point there’s no indication of onward transmission of the virus in North America. I expect we’ll be getting more details in the coming hours.

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